Book Week Theme 2017

Read Across Canada! A literary journey across Canada

In 2017, the Canadian Children’s Book Centre is celebrating the 40th anniversary of the very first Book Week tour. In 1977, eleven authors set out on the first Children’s Book Festival tour sponsored by the one-year-old Children’s Book Centre. This was a great venture for a fledgling industry – bringing together children and books all over the country and providing teachers, librarians, booksellers and parents with the first Our Choice guide (now Best Books for Kids & Teens) to children’s books. Frank Newfeld, famous for his illustrations for Alligator Pie, created the image for the very first Book Week poster.

Since Book Week is celebrating its 40th anniversary, and Canada is celebrating its 150th birthday, the theme we have chosen to celebrate – Read Across Canada / Lire aux quatre coins du Canada – will encourage young readers to learn about Canada by reading books set in different provinces and locations across the country. The CCBC plans to feature 150 Canadian books in the online theme guide, which will be available by the end of March 2017.